Gary Cloutier arrested in Palm Springs

Councilman Gary Cloutier, one of two candidates in the yet undecided Vallejo's mayoral race, was arrested early Sunday on charges of public intoxication, police said.

Police were called to the area of Arenas Road and Calle El Segundo for a report of an intoxicated man attempting to drive away around 3:45 a.m, a Palm Springs Police Department press release said.

Cloutier, 45, was arrested after police found him in the driver's seat of a newer Cadillac, according to the Palm Springs police report.

Cloutier was "staggering and could barely stand" after leaving Hunter's Bar, according to the police report. He was booked and held at Palm Springs Jail, and re-leased on a promise to appear at a later time, police said.

No other information was available about the incident on Sunday.

Voice mail messages left for Cloutier Sunday night were not immediately returned.

Cloutier and three other candidates ran for mayor this year to succeed Tony Intintoli, Jr. In the Nov. 6 election, he and former county supervisor Osby Davis finished the initial balloting in a tie vote.

Since the election, officials have been counting absentee and provisional ballots to determine a winner. As of Friday, Cloutier had been ahead by 52 votes with about 400 provisional ballots from Vallejo yet to be counted. Election officials said Friday they hoped to have those ballots counted by Monday.